Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Couture Jacket Class -- 5

So, when I last left you, the wool was being thread traced. I finished all that on all the pieces. Then, I cut out the interfacing for all the pieces. This is a thinner, drapey wool so all the pieces are interfaced. After I cut out the interfacing, I had to quilt two pieces of interfacing together. This was done by machine. There are two pieces of interfacing on the upper back and upper shoulders. I basted my interfacing to the wool and re-thread-traced the seam allowances and roll line. After I attached my interfacing, I started pad stitching the lapel. I also added a woven tape to the roll line. It's not a twill tape even though it looks like it. And it's not a bias tape. This tape has a slight stretch and recovery to it. That's important. Twill tape does not stretch and bias tape stretches like crazy but doesn't recover. So, you put your woven tape on the roll line and keep it just shorter than you need. I pinned both ends, stretched it to fit, and found the middle. I used a fell stitch to attach the tape to the roll line.

Then you get ready to prick your fingers. You roll the lapel like it will be when you are wearing it and start pad stitching. It's an easy stitch and it goes fast. I made 1/4" lines on my interfacing so they were straight.

See how nicely it rolls? The corner of the lapel has smaller, denser padstitching that is almost perpendicular to the other padstitching. This is so the corner really hugs the body.

Now, when I lay the lapel flat, the fabric bubbles. This is exactly what I want. The padstitching creates subtle shaping. The stitches do go all the way through the fabric but the thread is exactly the same color so you can't see it.